When Life Imitates Art

People always ask, “Where do you get your ideas for a book?” The truth is they come from everywhere. Sometimes it’s a line in a song, or an overheard conversation, or a twist on a situation a friend is in, but always, it seems to be something I can personally relate to and can look forward to seeing how my hero and heroine work it out. The Betrayal became more personal than I could’ve imagined.

The Betrayal actually began in my book The Truth. Marissa was Lexie’s best friend and needed to create her own happiness. But she was married to the wrong man and needed to find her independence and work through her anger and pain before she could be happy with the right man. My publisher loved my idea and told me to get to work telling their story.

Ironically, as life tends to be, the moment I sat down to write Marissa’s story and hold her hand through the hard times she was about to face, I discovered that I had also been betrayed. Needless to say, the timing was unbelievable, and if I wasn’t the one it happened to, I wouldn’t have ever believed it. Now Marissa and I were both going through the pain and anger of learning our spouse had betrayed us in the most painful way imaginable, and both of us had to heal before we could embrace a happy future.

As a reader there is a comfort in climbing into a book and realizing you’re not alone. Whether it’s something you’ve experienced or a dream or fantasy you’ve had, to follow someone else’s journey through it, to see them survive, grow, and find happiness is one of my favorite parts of a good book. As a writer, to be able to see yourself healing along with your heroine is nothing short of amazing.

We all deserve our happily ever after but whether real life or fiction, it’s a process to get there. I won’t give up, and neither should you. I’m excited to focus on the rest of my life, and just as Marissa has done, I will grasp my happiness and live happily ever after. This would be easier if I could just locate a man as patient and remarkable as Jordan. Lucky girl, my Marissa.